THE ARGUMENT.--This First Book proposes,
first in brief, the whole subject--Man's disobedience, and the loss thereupon of
Paradise, wherein he was placed: then touches the prime cause of his fall--the
Serpent, or rather Satan in the Serpent; who, revolting from God, and drawing to
his side many legions of Angels, was, by the command of God, driven out of
Heaven, with all his crew, into the great Deep. Which action passed over, the
Poem hastes into the midst of things; presenting Satan, with his Angels, now
fallen into Hell--described here not in the Centre (for heaven and earth may be
supposed as yet not made, certainly not yet accursed), but in a place of utter
darkness, fitliest called Chaos. Here Satan, with his Angels lying on the
burning lake, thunderstruck and astonished after a certain space recovers, as
from confusion; calls up him who, next in order and dignity, lay by him: they
confer of their miserable fall. Satan awakens all his legions, who lay till then
in the same manner confounded. They rise: their numbers; array of battle; their
chief leaders named, according to the idols known afterwards in Canaan and the
countries adjoining. To these Satan directs his speech; comforts them with hope
yet of regaining Heaven; but tells them, lastly, of a new world and new kind of
creature to be created, according to an ancient prophecy, or report, in
Heaven--for that Angels were long before this visible creation was the opinion
of many ancient Fathers. To find out the truth of this prophecy, and what to
determine thereon, he refers to a full council. What his associates thence
attempt. Pandemonium, the palace of Satan, rises, suddenly built out of the
Deep: the infernal Peers there sit in council.
OF MAN'S first
disobedience, and the fruit
Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste
Brought death into the World, and all our woe,
With loss of Eden, till
one greater Man
Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat, 5
Sing,
Heavenly Muse, that, on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That Shepherd who first taught the chosen seed
In the beginning how the
heavens and earth
Rose out of Chaos: or, if Sion hill 10
Delight thee
more, and Siloa's brook that flowed
Fast by the oracle of God, I thence
Invoke thy aid to my adventrous song,
That with no middle flight intends
to soar
Above the Aonian mount, while it pursues 15
Things unattempted
yet in prose or rhyme.
And chiefly Thou, O Spirit, that dost prefer
Before all temples the upright heart and pure,
Instruct me, for Thou
know'st; Thou from the first
Wast present, and, with mighty wings outspread,
20
Dove-like sat'st brooding on the vast Abyss,
And mad'st it pregnant:
what in me is dark
Illumine, what is low raise and support;
That, to the
highth of this great argument,
I may assert Eternal Providence, 25
And
justify the ways of God to men.
Say first--for Heaven hides nothing from
thy view,
Nor the deep tract of Hell--say first what cause
Moved our
grand Parents, in that happy state,
Favoured of Heaven so highly, to fall
off 30
From their Creator, and transgress his will
For one restraint,
lords of the World besides.
Who first seduced them to that foul revolt?
The infernal Serpent; he it was whose guile,
Stirred up with envy
and revenge, deceived 35
The mother of mankind, what time his pride
Had
cast him out from Heaven, with all his host
Of rebel Angels, by whose aid,
aspiring
To set himself in glory above his peers,
He trusted to have
equalled the Most High, 40
If he opposed, and, with ambitious aim
Against the throne and monarchy of God,
Raised impious war in Heaven and
battle proud,
With vain attempt. Him the Almighty Power
Hurled headlong
flaming from the ethereal sky, 45
With hideous ruin and combustion, down
To bottomless perdition, there to dwell
In adamantine chains and penal
fire,
Who durst defy the Omnipotent to arms.
[The Departure from Eden]
So spake the
Archangel Michaël； then paused,
As at the World's great period; and our
Sire,
Replete with joy and wonder, thus replied:--
"O Goodness
infinite, Goodness immense,
That all this good of evil shall produce, 470
And evil turn to good--more wonderful
Than that which by creation first
brought forth
Light out of darkness! Full of doubt I stand,
Whether I
should repent me now of sin
By me done and occasioned, or rejoice 475
Much more that much more good thereof shall spring--
To God more glory,
more good-will to men
From God--and over wrauth grace shall abound.
But
say, if our Deliverer up to Heaven
Must reascend, what will betide the few,
480
His faithful, left among the unfaithful herd,
The enemies of truth.
Who then shall guide
His people, who defend? Will they not deal
Worse
with his followers than with him they dealt?"
"Be sure they will," said
the Angel; "but from Heaven 485
He to his own a Comforter will send,
The
promise of the Father, who shall dwell,
His Spirit, within them, and the law
of faith
Working through love upon their hearts shall write,
To guide
them in all truth, and also arm 490
With spiritual armour, able to resist
Satan's assaults, and quench his fiery darts--
What man can do against
them not afraid,
Though to the death; against such cruelties
With inward
consolations recompensed, 495
And often supported so as shall amaze
Their proudest persecutors. For the Spirit,
Poured first on his
Apostles, whom he sends
To evangelize the nations, then on all
Baptized,
shall them with wondrous gifts endue 500
To speak all tongues, and do all
miracles,
As did their Lord before them. Thus they win
Great numbers of
each nation to receive
With joy the tidings brought from Heaven: at length,
Their ministry performed, and race well run, 505
Their doctrine and
their story written left,
They die; but in their room, as they forewarn,
Wolves shall succeed for teachers, grievous wolves,
Who all the sacred
mysteries of Heaven
To their own vile advantages shall turn 510
With superstitions and traditions taint,
Left only in those written Records pure,
Though not but by the Spirit understood.
Then shall they seek to avail themselves of names, 515
Palaces, and titles, and with these to join
Secular power, though feigning still to act
By spiritual; to themselves appropriating
The Spirit of God, promised alike and given
To all believers; and, from that pretense, 520
Spiritual laws by carnal power shall force
On every conscience--laws which none shall find
Left them enrowled, or what the Spirit within
Shall on the heart engrave. What will they then
But force the Spirit of Grace itself, and bind 525
His consort, Liberty? what but unbuild
His living temples, built by faith to stand--
Their own faith, not another's? for, on Earth,
Who against faith and conscience can be heard
Infallible? Yet many will presume: 530
Whence heavy persecution shall arise
On all who in the worship persevere
Of Spirit and Truth; the rest, far greater part,
Will deem in outward rites and specious forms
Religion satisfied; Truth shall retire 535
Bestuck with slanderous darts, and works of Faith
Rarely be found. So shall the World go on,
To good malignant, to bad men benign,
Under her own weight groaning, till the day
Appear of respiration to the just 540
And vengeance to the wicked, at return
Of Him so lately promised to thy aid,
The Woman's Seed--obscurely then foretold,
Now amplier known the Saviour and thy Lord;
Last in the clouds from Heaven to be revealed 545
In glory of the Father, to dissolve
Satan with his perverted World; then raise
From the conflagrant mass, purged and refined,
New Heavens, new Earth, Ages of endless date
Founded in righteousness and peace and love, 550
To bring forth fruits, joy and eternal bliss."
He ended; and thus Adam last replied:--
"How soon hath thy prediction, Seer blest,
Measured this transient World, the race of Time,
Till Time stand fixed! Beyond is all abyss-- 555
Eternity, whose end no eye can reach.
Greatly instructed I shall hence depart,
Greatly in peace of thought, and have my fill
Of knowledge, what this vessel can contain;
Beyond which was my folly to aspire. 560
Henceforth I learn that to obey is best,
And love with fear the only God, to walk
As in his presence, ever to observe
His providence, and on him sole depend,
Merciful over all his works, with good 565
Still overcoming evil, and by small
Accomplishing great things--by things deemed weak
Subverting worldly-strong, and worldly-wise
By simply meek; that suffering for Truth's sake
Is fortitude to highest victory, 570
And to the faithful death the gate of life--
Taught this by his example whom I now <!--pagebreak--> Acknowledge my Redeemer ever blest."
To whom thus also the Angel last replied:--
"This having learned, thou hast attained the sum 575
Of wisdom; hope no higher, though all the stars
Thou knew'st by name, and all the ethereal powers,
All secrets of the Deep, all Nature's works,
Or works of God in heaven, air, earth, or sea,
And all the riches of this world enjoy'dst, 580
And all the rule, one empire. Only add
Deeds to thy knowledge answerable; add faith;
Add virtue, patience, temperance; add love,
By name to come called Charity, the soul
Of all the rest: then wilt thou not be loth 585
To leave this Paradise, but shalt possess
A Paradise within thee, happier far.
Let us descend now, therefore, from this top
Of speculation; for the hour precise
Exacts our parting hence; and, see! the guards, 590
By me encamped on yonder hill, expect
Their motion, at whose front a flaming sword,
In signal of remove, waves fiercely round.
We may no longer stay. Go, waken Eve;
Her also I with gentle dreams have calmed, 595
Portending good, and all her spirits composed
To meek submission: thou, at season fit,
Let her with thee partake what thou hast heard--
Chiefly what may concern her faith to know,
The great deliverance by her seed to come 600
(For by the Woman's Seed) on all mankind--
That ye may live, which will be many days,
Both in one faith unanimous; though sad
With cause for evils past, yet much more cheered
With meditation on the happy end." 605
He ended, and they both descend the hill.
Descended, Adam to the bower where Eve
Lay sleeping ran before, but found her waked;
And thus with words not sad she him received:--
"Whence thou return'st and whither went'st I know; 610
For God is also in sleep, and dreams advise,
Which he hath sent propitious, some great good
Presaging, since, with sorrow and heart's distress
Wearied, I fell asleep. But now lead on;
In me is no delay; with thee to go 615
Is to stay here; without thee here to stay
Is to go hence unwilling; thou to me
Art all things under Heaven, all places thou,
Who for my wilful crime art banished hence.
This further consolation yet secure 620
I carry hence: though all by me is lost,
Such favour I unworthy am voutsafed,
By me the Promised Seed shall all restore." <!--pagebreak--> So spake our mother Eve; and Adam heard
Well pleased, by answered not; for now too nigh 625
The Archangel stood, and from the other hill
To their fixed station, all in bright array,
The Cherubim descended, on the ground
Gliding meteorous, as evening mist
Risen from a river o'er the marish glides, 630
And gathers ground fast at the labourer's heel
Homeward returning. High in front advanced,
The brandished sword of God before them blazed,
Fierce as a comet; which with torrid heat,
And vapour at the Libyan air adust, 635
Began to parch that temperate clime; whereat
In either hand the hastening Angel caught
Our lingering Parents, and to the eastern gate
Led them direct, and down the cliff as fast
To the subjected plain--then disappeared. 640
They, looking back, all the eastern side beheld
Of Paradise, so late their happy seat,
Waved over by that flaming brand; the gate
With dreadful faces thronged and fiery arms.
Some natural tears they dropped, but wiped them soon; 645
The world was all before them, where to choose
Their place of rest, and Providence their guide.
They, hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow,
Through Eden took their solitary way.
